This combination of AP file photos shows the Walt Disney logo in Burbank, Calif. on June 2, 2006, and Netflix's headquarters in Los Gatos, Calif., on March 20, 2012. Netflix's video subscription service has trumped pay-TV channels and grabbed the rights on Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2012, to show Disney movies shortly after they finish their runs in theaters.

Netflix did not announce how much it will pay Disney for the rights, which begins with films released to theaters in 2016, but the Los Angeles Times reported that it could be worth more than $300 million a year.

"It's clear this was not a cheap deal." Sterne Agee & Leach analyst Arvind Bhatia told Bloomberg News, which predicted the deal could pay $350 million a year.

It is the first time a major studio has agreed to such a deal with Netflix instead of a standard subscription-TV channel that contracts with cable and satellite providers, breaking a wall Netflix has been ramming its head against since it began streaming video.

"It was a long slog, but ultimately we displayed enough sustainability that Netflix became a real and viable option for the pay-TV window," Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos told Bloomberg.

Netflix has signed similar contracts with smaller studios, including DreamWorks Animation and the Weinstein Company, but the Disney deal gives Netflix exclusive access to a higher caliber of popular movies -- Disney owns the rights to movies from Emeryville's Pixar and Marvel's line of popular comic-book characters. In addition, Netflix will be able to offer classic Disney titles, beefing up its offering for children, and will begin to receive Disney's direct-to-video offerings next year.

"It's a bold leap forward for Internet television and we are incredibly pleased and proud this iconic family brand is teaming with Netflix to make it happen," Sarandos said in Tuesday's announcement.

The Netflix deal does not currently include movies from San Francisco-based LucasFilms, the "Star Wars" creator that was recently purchased by Disney in a $4 billion deal that is expected to bring new sequels to theaters in time to possibly give Netflix exclusive first-run rights, a Netflix spokesman told Bloomberg. Since the LucasFilms deal has not yet closed, that could change in the future.

Netflix even settled a score with the deal, taking the rights from former partner Starz. Starz contracted with Netflix on its streaming-video service for years, offering it Disney movies and other content until the pay-TV channel declined to renew their contract in February. Netflix may not be done swiping deals from Starz, either: Sarandos told Bloomberg that Netflix will bid aggressively for Sony films when that studio's deal with Starz ends.

Starz said in a statement that it is focusing its attention and cash more on exclusive content than deals such as these, but Netflix may have the pay-TV network beat there as well, as it is producing new episodes of cult favorite "Arrested Development" as well as the Kevin Spacey-helmed "House of Cards," both of which should reach subscribers in 2013.

With anticipated original programming and these types of exclusive deals, Netflix manages to separate itself from rival Internet streaming-video providers and officially enter the realm of traditional heavyweights such as HBO, experts said.

Investors immediately jumped on Netflix stock after the deal was announced, pushing it higher in yet another spike for the company that has had a yo-yoing share price for the past two years. Netflix stock closed at $86.64, its highest level since April, after a 14 percent boost.

And the widely watched Standard & Poor's 500 index: Down 2.41, or 0.17 percent, to 1,407.05

Check in weekday afternoons for the 60-Second Business Break, a summary of news from Mercury News staff writers, The Associated Press, Bloomberg News and other wire services. Contact Jeremy C. Owens at 408-920-5876; follow him at Twitter.com/mercbizbreak.